This invention relates to guns, and, more particularly, to a gun which is equipped with a pivoting barrel, a projectile loader, and a trigger interlock for preventing the gun from being fired when the barrel is pivoted out of the firing position.
Guns have been provided with pivoting barrels in the past, For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,774,929 describes an air gun which includes a pivoting barrel. A pivoting barrel permits checking the bore for ammunition, easy cleaning of the bore, and loading individual projectiles into the bore. However, if the barrel does not return to the exact location after each shot due to designed tolerances or wear, the accuracy of the gun will be erratic. Further, retention of the barrel in the firing position must be sufficient to withstand the forces encountered during firing without barrel movement for optimum accuracy.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,774,929 describes a pivoting lever for maintaining the barrel in the firing position. The firing position is controlled by a V block on the frame of the gun and a pad on the lever which engages the barrel and forces the barrel inside the V block.